Modular Buildings Changing the Construction Industry

When most people hear the word “modular” with respect to buildings, they often mistakenly picture cheaply built mobile homes sitting atop flatbed trucks cruising down the highway. In other words, modular is regarded as somewhat of a four-letter word. But modular construction practices aren’t equivalent to manufactured homes, and the industry in North America is finally waking up to the fact. By way of definition, modular or offsite construction “involves the process of planning, designing, fabricating, transporting and assembling building elements for rapid site assembly to a greater degree of finish than in traditional piecemeal on-site construction,” according to the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) Off-Site Construction Council.